Package for radiosonde



J. COLLINS ET AL 3,353,100

PACKAGE FOR RADIOSONDE Nov. 14, 1967 SSheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 6, 1964ATTORN EY 1967 .1. N. COLLINS ET AL PACKAGE FOR RADIOSONDE 5Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 6, 1964 aamrmw ATTORNEY Nov. 14, 1967 J. N.COLLINS ET AL 3,353,100

PACKAGE FOR RADIOSONDE Filed April 6, 1964 s Sheets-Sheet s 7BW.W1

. ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,353,100 PACKAGE FOR RADIGSONDE John N.Collins, 513 Burton Road, Oreland, Pa. 19075,

and Maurice Friedman, 7961 Thouron Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19150 FiledApr. 6, 1964, Sea. N 357,503 4 Claims. (Cl. 325-113) A radiosonde is,briefly, an instrument intended to measure humidity and temperature andalso pressure in the upper atmosphere.

A balloon lifts the instrument to high altitudes and a small parachutebreaks the return fall once the balloon bursts.

Generally, the radiosonde is considered an expendable item but many arefound and returned for reconditioning and reuse.

The design preceding the present invention was constructed of aparticularly critical corrugated fibreboard that was easily damaged.

The major faults of prior devices are:

(1) Undependable resistance to water damage by direct leaks or gradualsoaking of the paper box in flight 01' on the ground.

(2) Electrical leakage of the circuitry directly caused by waterpenetration.

(3) Added plastic parts were required to insure electrical insulation atcritical points.

(4-) Assembly and subsequent service were made very difficult because awatertight seal made reopening the box almost destructive. Even minoradjustments of the relay or modulator were nearly impossible.

(5) Return of the instruments through the mail required the finder tofollow detailed directions. This feature assumed each finder could readwhich was often not the case.

(6) The thermistor element was exposed to damage since a maximumextension was desired and the box limited the mechanical arrangementspossible.

(7) Verification of serial numbers and other examination of the internalparts was difiicut due to the general inaccessibility of the paper box.

(8) Where eight (8) or more varieties of radiosondes are in current usethe paper box design did not lend itself to interchangeability. Eachtype had to be built around specific requirements.

With the foregoing in view, the object of this invention is to devise anovel package for radiosonde which overcomes the objections to priordevices and which provides a durable and weather-proof package with anovel construction and arrangement of component parts.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, we have shown in theaccompanying drawings a preferred embodiment which we have found inpractice to give satisfactory and reliable results. It is, however, tobe understood that the various instrumentalities of which the inventionconsists can be variously arranged and organized without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention, and therefore do not desire to belimited, except by the scope of the appended claims to the exactarrangement and organization of these instrumentalities as herein setforth.

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a radiosonde embodying our invention.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the radiosonde with the top cover orduct housing raised and the outrigger in folded position.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view, with the baroswitch housing opened toexpose the baroswitch mechanism.

FIGURE 4 is an exploded view of certain of the parts.

FIGURE 5 is a bottom view of the base showing the transmitter engaged inthe bottom.

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of the base with the transmitter engagedin the base.

FIGURE 7 is a top plan view of the outrigger in folded condition andpositioned on the supporting lugs on the top of the baroswitch housing.

FIGURE 8 is a side elevation of the folded outrigger of FIGURE 7 afterit has been folded over into position on the baroswitch housing, whichis partly broken away.

FIGURE 9 is a section on the line 9-9 of FIGURE 10.

FIGURE 10 is a section on the line 1010 of FIG- URE 1.

FIGURE 11 is a top plan view of a fragment of the baroswitch housing onan enlarged scale, showing details of the labyrinth.

FIGURE 12 is a perspective view of the radiosonde with the transmitterdisconnected and the entire assembly inserted in a shipping bag, with aportion of the bag broken away.

FIGURE 13 is a section on the line 13-13 of FIG- URE 10.

FIGURE 14 is an enlarged side elevation of the mounting hinge of theoutrigger.

Similar numerals indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings:

For convenience of illustration we will first identify the maincomponent parts; a base 1, a baroswitch housing 2, a top cover 3, atransmitter 4-, an outrigger 5, a baro switch circuit 6, said baroswitchbeing a pressure transducer connected with a plug 7 with a battery 3 anda sensitized plate 9.

The base The base 1 is in the form of a rectangularly shaped box havinga battery receiving chamber 10 and having a front wall in the form of ahinged door 11, best seen in FIGURE 2. The bottom wall 12 is cut out at13 to form a bayonet type connection with the upper end of thetransmitter. The bottom wall has an upper folded over portion 14 whichmaintains a tension on the arms of the transmitter when the latter isassembled therewith. The two portions of the bottom are stapled togetherat two points as at 15 and 16. This is best seen in FIGURES 4, 5 and 6.

The opposite side walls of the base are deflected inwardly at theirupper ends and the one side wall 17 on the left side of the door openingis cut away as at 18 to permit space for inserting a shipping bag 19 tobe stored and later to be withdrawn and provided with a tag 20 with areturn address. This is best seen in FIGURES l0 and 12.

The top of the base 21 is waterproof and is provided with a mountingplatform 22, hollow underneath and contributing to form a space for theshipping bag, and having mounting posts 23. The sides and rear of theplatform 22 overlap the base as at 24, 25 and 26, the platform beingfixed to the base on each side wall by staples 27, 28, 29 and 30. Theupper part of the overlapping sides form a shoulder 31 which provides aseat for the baroswitch housing 2. Extending from the right side of theplatform 22 and integral therewith is an upwardly extending wall 32extending rearwardly and terminating in a labyrinth 33 consisting of aplurality of pockets 34 adapted to receive test wires 36, the pockets 34being provided with slots 37, having their bottoms raised above thesurface of the mounting platform to prevent the entrance of moisture,and open at their tops, said test wires being passed downwardly throughslots in the printed circuit block into the pockets of said labyrinthand then through said slots in such a way as to cause a snubbing 3action on the wires as shown in FIGUREII, to prevent the breakage of thewires.

A harness 38 is fixed to each overlapping wall of the platform 22 in anydesired manner.

Baroswitch housing The baroswitch housing is rectangular, has a slip fitover the platform 22 and is in hinged connection therewith by a plastichinge 39. The side wall which overlaps the labyrinth is provided withopen end V shaped slots 40 through which the test wires passwhen thehousing is in closed position, and by reason of their V shape, compressthe wires in the bottom of their slots, thus providing a watertighthousing which seals the baroswitch circuit from moisture. The closed topsurface provides a platform for mounting the outrigger 5, havingupwardly extending projections 41 on which a hinge of the outrigger ismounted and provided with pockets 42 and 43 adapted to receive the legsof the outrigger when in folded and stored condition. Adjacent thepockets 42 and 43 are guide lugs 44 and 45, having corresponding lugs 46and 47 at the rearward end of the housing and an additional guide lug 48across the rear. Retaining pins 49 and 50 are also provided to retainthe lead wires in position. Suitable recesses 51 and 52 are formed inthe top of the housing 2 to form guides for the harness.

Outrigger The outrigger is formed of a one piece flexible plasticmolding Consisting of a hinge portion 53 with a relieved portion 53', adetail of which is shown in FIGURE 14, adapted to be received and fixedon the upwardly extending projections 41 on the top surface of thebaroswitch housing, said hinge portion forming part of an end arm 54,said arm 54 being provided with side arms 56 and 57, arms 56 and 57 alsobeing provided with supporting lugs 58 and 59. Arms 56 and 57 areconnected at their forward ends by end arm 60, said arm 60 having latchportions 61 and 62. The arm'60 also forms part of hinge 63, said hingehaving a relieved portion the same as hinge 53, connecting an inner endarm 64, having side arms 65 and 66, having suitable lugs 67, 68, 69 and70 to retain lead wires, The side arms 65 and 66 are provided with lugs71 and 72 adapted to receive lead wires 73 and 74 which support athermistor element 75, said.

element being in electrical circuit with the sensitized plate 9 mountedin the top cover .3, by leads 76, and also connected to the printedcircuit of the baroswitch. The side arms 65 and 66 are connected at theend opposite the hinge by an arm or bail .89 which serves to protect thethermistor 75 from damage and are also provided with lugs 77 and 78,provided with projections 77 and 78', which cooperate with thecorresponding latch portions 61 and 62',having projections 61' and 62,as best seen in FIGURE 13.

Cover The cover 3 forms a duct housing and is hinged to the baroswitchhousing 2 by a plastic hinge 79. The cover 3 has an air intake opening80 at its rear top portion, formed by a downwardly and forwardlydeflected portion 81 and side walls 82 and 83 to form a duct. Theforward end of the cover is open as at.84, to provide an opening for thefree passage of air to the sensitized plate 9, said plate being held inposition by spring clips 9. The sides of the cover 3 are provided withretaining and guiding lugs 90, adapted to receive and retain the harness38.

When the outrigger is extended to its operating position, as seen inFIGURE '1, the inner arms are first extended forwardly and latched intolocked position, as seen in FIGURES 1 and 13. The supporting lugs 58 and59 are then engaged .in the front opening 84 of the cover 3, as bestseen in FIGURE 10.

The transmitter 4 is also provided with a removable snap-on cover 85 asseen in FIGURE 12.

The package is retained in assembled condition by a 4- tie string 86fixed to the front of the battery door, then being passed around abutton 87 fixed to one wall of the base 1, thence being passed aroundthe closed baroswitch cover and the top cover, then downwardly toanother button 88 fixed to the opposite wall of the base 1, the stringbeing passed around said button one or two turns.

The baroswitch housing and the cover are preferably formed frompolystyrene plastic. The baroswitch housing when opened providescomplete access to the baroswitch circuit, and the vital parts arecompletely protected from unfavorable weather conditions. The outriggerwhich is preferably formed from polypropylene, can be extended so thatit is of greater length than the compartment than that into which it isfolded in order to extend it farther from the case, thus reducing theerror from re-radiated heat from the case.

On return shipment of the package to the Weather Bureau or themanufacturer, when it isrecovered on the ground, the cord is unfastened,the outrigger unlatched and folded into closed position and the coverclosed, the transmitter is detached and placed alongsidethe package andplaced with it inside the shipping bag, and the complete package isgiven to the post ofiice or rural mail carrier for return shipment.

The baroswitch is technically a pressure transducer.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. A radiosonde packagefor radiosonde comprising a base portion having abattery receiving compartment, a battery in said compartment, a pressuretransducer including an electrical circuit mounted on the top of saidbase, a pressure transducer housing .movably connected with said baseand sealed when closed with the top of the base, and a foldableoutrigger mounted on top of said housing, a thermistor on saidoutrigger, a cover movably connected to said housing and having intakeand.

discharge air openings forming an air stream between the cover andhousing, a humidity element secured within the air stream within saidcover and a transmitter detachably connected with said base, saidhumidity element, thermistor, transmitter and pressure transducer beingin electrical connection with said battery and electrical circuit.

2. The means defined in claim 1, wherein a shipping bag with a returnaddress within the package is provided, whereby when the package isdropped, the finder can place the package in the bag and deliver it to apost ofiice.

3. The construction and arrangement defined in claim 1 wherein alabyrinth is provided on top of the base in the form of pockets withupwardly opening slots to receive test wires and the housing is providedwith slots opening downwardly to receive and bind the test wires inposition when the housing is in closed position.

4. A radiosonde package comprising a chambered base having an opening topermit insertion of a battery and having a door closing said opening andhaving a closed top forming a mounting, a pressure transducer on saidmounting, a pressure transducer housing hinged to said base, having anopen bottom and a slip fit connection with the base, the top of saidtransducer housing forming an outrigger mounting, an outrigger hinged onsaid outrigger mounting, a thermistor mounted in said outrigger, a coverhinged to the transducer housing, having a slip fit therewith, saidcover forming a duct having an air intake at its top at one end and anair discharge opening in proximity to said outrigger, a sensitized platemounted in the air stream in the .duct formed by the cover and the topof the pressure transducer housing, said plate, thermistor, pressuretransducer and battery forming part of an electric circuit and atransmitter secured to the bottom of said base and in the electricalcircuit with the sensitized plate, thermistor, pressure transducer andbattery, means to retain the base, pressure trans: ducer housing andcover in closed relationship and a References Cited UNITED STATESPATENTS 6/1931 Van Dyck 325361 X 7/1952 Hauck et a] 325--113 X 6 Madlandet a1. 325-113 Rossi 325-113 Deisinger 325113 Zelov 325-119 JOHN W.CALDWELL, Primary Examiner.

1. A RADIOSONDE PACKAGE FOR RADIOSONDE COMPRISING A BASE PORTION HAVINGA BATTERY RECEIVING COMPARTMENT, A BATTERY IN SAID COMPARTMENT, APRESSURE TRANSDUCER INCLUDING AN ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT MOUNTED ON THE TOPOF SAID BASE, A PRESSURE TRANSDUCER HOUSING MOVABLY CONNECTED WITH SAIDBASE AND SEALED WHEN CLOSED WITH THE TOP OF THE BASE, AND A FOLDABLEOUTRIGGER MOUNTED ON TOP OF SAID HOUSING, A THERMISTOR ON SAIDOUTRIGGER, A COVER MOVABLY CONNECTED TO SAID HOUSING AND HAVING INTAKEAND DISCHARGE AIR OPENINGS FORMING AN AIR STREAM BETWEEN THE COVER ANDHOUSING, A HUMIDITY ELEMENT SECURED WITHIN THE AIR STREAM WITHIN SAIDCOVER AND A TRANSMITTER DETACHABLY CONNECTED WITH SAID BASE, SAIDHUMIDITY ELEMENT, THERMISTOR, TRANSMITTER AND PRESSURE TRANSDUCER BEINGIN ELECTRICAL CONNECTION WITH SAID BATTERY AND ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT.